Combo (And Rune) Guide by Bondbug
A Combo (and Rune) Guide
Published at DarkMatters for review and discussion
Compiled by a beginner for beginners, with information from posts too numerous to mention individually, from personal experiments with all characters in SP at low levels (none above level 25), and with special thanks to FrostElfGuard for editing and correcting the draft, and for adding all the more advanced info. Thanks also to Caroline and Myles for encouragement and advice at critical times.
Contents
Terminology
Terminology used here: COMBAT ARTS (CAs) are generally comprised of
- SPECIAL MOVES, which need physical regeneration, and
- COMBAT SPELLS which use mental regeneration.
Physical characters use only Special Moves:
• Gladiator
• Dark Elf (DE)
• Vampiress
Mentally oriented characters use only Combat Spells:
• Battle Mage (BM)
Hybrid characters use both:
• Seraphim
• Wood Elf (WE)
• Dwarf (why is the Dwarf here? Though all his CAs use PR, the Cannon-based Arts can be improved by "All Magic Spells +1" amulets.)
• Daemon
Intro
Combos are created when you visit a Combo Master (same guy who you trade runes with). The first Combo Master in SP is in Silver Creek, you must complete a quest for him before he can create combos for you. Don’t worry too much about getting there in a hurry except perhaps to trade runes. Make sure you have also completed the first Blacksmith quest. You will need the blacksmith for socketing runes for battle use, some time before you can usefully start thinking about combos. Combos are most useful further into the game, and it is convenient to have a blacksmith in the same town as the Combo Master (consult map). It will take you a fair time to collect a number of runes of the right type for combos.
• You can have up to four combos.
• Each combo can have up to four Combat Arts (Moves or Spells), of any level, which will be cast in sequence.
• Combos cost 100 gold per level for each CA, totaled, then multiplied by the number of CAs in the combo. e.g. a combo with 4 CAs of 6, 4, 8, & 5 levels will cost (6+4+8+5) x 100 gold x 4 CAs = 9200
• Upgrades are priced as if they were completely new combos (sheer robbery!)
• CAs can be upgraded in two ways:
1. by acquiring ‘gear’ which carries a CA upgrade;
2. by the use of Runes.
• However, combos are just one of the options you have for using Runes to boost your combat performance. So first we need to look at the use of Runes.
Runes
1 You can use a rune in any one of three different ways:
• right-click (‘eat’ it) and boost the level of the combat art in your fighting inventory or
• socket it onto your equipment;
• exchange it, with others, at the Combo-master.
2. Each rune you pick-up in the course of the game carries 2 bonuses:
• a one point upgrade for a Special Move or Spell;
• a ‘general’ bonus’ (the text is often, but not always, in gold/yellow) -- for instance: +10% on attack and defence; +3% on “leeching”; +2 on constitution; +10% on fire damage; etc.. This second, ‘general’ bonus is only effective if it is socketed to an item that you are wearing at any given time. It has no effect if the rune is ‘eaten’ or if a socket-boosted skill is used in a Combo.
In other words: you are encouraged by the game to socket runes to get special advantages. Runes socketed will only boost levels of combat arts you have already trained in (right-clicked on, or started the game with). That is, unless a combat art is active, it cannot be boosted. Some characters (the Vampiress and Daemon) have combat arts that are only available when they have transformed.
3. For all Runes where the CA bonus is applicable to your character you can gain both bonuses only by socketing one such Rune to an item you will wear/carry in battle.
4. Otherwise:
• For Runes for your own character type: if you do not need the ‘general’ bonus, then consider ‘eating’ the rune for the Skill/Spell bonus which will then be available at all times.
• For Runes of other characters,
a) if the Combat Art bonus is appropriate, you can socket as many as you wish on to items which you will wear/carry only when creating Combos. Do not, however, think you can fill only two of a total of three or four sockets for the time being and add more later - you will lose all but one of the currently socketed items if you try to add more runes. Also remember that you can only wear/carry one of each type of gear during Combo creation. Do not, for instance, split runes of the same type on to two different helmets or 2 different weapons.
b) if the Combat Art bonus is not applicable to your character, you can still acquire the second bonus, by socketing for use in battle, particularly early in the game when this is the only way you can acquire (for instance) ‘leeching’ bonuses. Note again, as stated above, that if you wish to move socketed bonuses forward to better equipment as the opportunity arises, make sure only to socket one such rune onto each item so that it can be recovered later.
5. Be aware that there are a number of rune equivalences across the game.
• For instance, Multi-hit occurs for most characters. The Vampires’s version of Multi-Hit also conveys 3% life leech, and so Vampiress Combat Move runes are often sought to boost regular melee attacks of most characters. If a character wants RSM, then the Gladiator version might be socketed. It all depends on taste.
• Further: Daemon combat moves also map onto the big three (Multi-Hit, Hard-Hit and Attack -- though their artwork and names do not match up. Soaring Daemon==Hard Hit. Similarly, WE Attack is called "An Eye for an Eye".
6. The boost from equipping socketed equipment goes away when you switch equipment or unequip it. So, be warned! If you wish to recover a socketed item (rune, ring or amulet) -- you can only get back one item out of set socketed into something. So, make sure you choose to pull out the right one! (People often use the leftmost socket for the most prized socketable. That way a habit develops when resocketing.)
7. Because of #6, people often make a "combo suit". This is a set of armour (and weapon/shield) kept in the chest to use to boost CA level for the making of a combo. CA level once locked into a combo is no longer dependent on equipment worn. Thus, you can safely stash such equipment...often changing into RSM or RS (and life leech) based equipment for general adventuring.
Combos
Combos serve two main functions:
1. To allow the use of certain boosted combat arts at levels well above those directly available in your ‘backpack’ (fighting inventory)
2. To allow you to initiate a series of up to four pre-programmed CAs--without having to wait a long time to regenerate the CAs.
Boosting Combat Arts with Runes
This is done by socketing relevant CAs on to armour or weapons which you will
• EITHER wear/carry only while you insert that skill into a Combo,
• OR wear/carry in battle to gain the additional ‘general’ bonuses – see above under ‘Runes’ For Combos you may need to change equipment for each different boosted entry in the same combo. Once the combo is constructed the socketed armour/weapons can be removed and stored for any future combo changes (See Runes #6 & 7 above).
The level of a Combat Art in a Combo is a snapshot of the total level of that art as boosted by bonuses attached to the clothing worn and weapons active when you made it, and will stay at that level regardless of subsequent clothing/weapon changes.
There are in effect only 4 Combat Arts that can be boosted by the runes of other chars, all Skills, and all are ‘instant’ (see below):
• Hard-hit, Multi-Hit and Attack, which occur under varying names for different characters
• Combat kick;
• There are 3 versions of Combat Jump – seraphim, Glad & Vamp – but they are not compatible
Other Combat Arts can only be boosted by finding, and wearing, gear with the appropriate bonuses.
However each character has 7 or 8 armour slots, and can carry a single-handed weapon and a shield, all of which may carry 2,3,or 4 sockets. In theory then you can boost the above 4 combat skills by 20-30 levels!
• In higher levels of difficulty, the rings and amulets can carry more than plus one...so you can get significantly higher combo boost by shopping for better jewelry.
• While the levels of combos will be low in bronze, the bonus of being able to rapidly execute up to four attacks at once --which can be regenerated by one yellow potion (concentration potion) is an amazing advantage.
• If a drop boosts your chosen combat arts, save it, it may be useful for making a combo later.
Combo structure
There are 3 main types of combo:
1. a combo consisting of one of a single CA, boosted by various means, and of a considerably higher level than the basic Combat Art in your backpack (which depends solely on how many have been 'eaten'). eg: for Gladiator: 1x HC; for BM: 1xSS; 1xGM; for seraphim 1xRBoL; for Vampiress: 1xTiV.
2. a combo which consists of one CA placed in all four slots to operate in sequence, the 4x combo, eg: for many classes: 4x HH; for BM: 4xIS; for Dwarf: 4xFT.
3. a combo consisting of a series of different CAs., eg: for seraphim: 1xRBoL, 1xL, 1xLS, 1xCL; for Daemon: 1xFD,1xIP,1xHS,1xBD; for Glad: 1xDS, 1xSJ, 2xAtt.
The first type is no problem. Single CA combos are simply a means of providing one single combat art of a higher level than you could otherwise manage. It will normally be one of the 4 CAs that can be boosted with other characters’ runes, but gear-boosted CAs are possible.
For the rest you will need to know which runes are ‘duration’ and which are ‘instant’. Fortunately this is one of the definitions which is clearly set out in the game. If you ‘hover’ the point of the cursor over any CA in the ‘techniques’ pocket of your ‘backpack’ you will see ‘duration’ noted where it is relevant. Any CA which does not have a ‘duration’ specified is by default ‘instant’.
BUT it is not quite as simple as that. You also need to consider the character of the ‘duration’ CAs.
You need to consider whether ‘duration’ applies to
1. an action which is cast then controlled by the hero over a period of time I.e. needs continuous involvement - “cast and control” (d-C&C), or
2. an effect which is instantly created but then carries on for a ‘duration’ without further action by the hero - “fire and forget” (d-F&F).
Fortunately there are very few of the d-C&C type runes. Only two in fact which are completely so. They are the seraphim’s BFG and Energy Bolts. WE’s Multi-Shot is also C&C, but can be followed by arrow runes.
• For the 4x combo use only ‘instant’ CAs. With ‘duration CAs only the last one will serve its full duration. Some combat arts are worth repeating immediately, so, you see the 4x Hard Hit example above (often used on Dragons. A target that will be around for 4 hits.)
• For the multi CA combo you can build up your own series. If you want to include duration CAs, include only one of each type, and if you include a ‘d-C&C’ CA then place it last in the sequence. Example, using the Seraphim: Hunter Seeker + Combat Jump + Rotating Blades of Light + Energy Bolts will work (I don’t say it is a good mix, but it works and you have to remember at the end to direct your energy bolts). But if you place Energy Bolts earlier the subsequent CAs will not happen.
• Some people run into a little trouble when they create combos. What they do is basically create a combo that doesn't work or all, or only works under very specific conditions.
• Simply put: each combat art in your combo has specific requirements. Hard Hit requires a target in range. Stoneskin requires a target that is not currently marked as possessing Stoneskin. Fire Wall requires a Daemon character tranformed into Fire Form to cast. Summon Bats: Blood Swarm requires a Vampiress transformed into a Vampire.
To create a successful combo, and to make a combo work in the field, the conditions required by the combo must exists at cast time.
So, when in doubt, test out the combo you want to make by acting out each part in order. If it works, great. If you can't really test it because your timers won't let you... just make it and test it in reduced conditions. That is in SP, in an area of the game where the opponents are greyed out. These targets won't move around much, and it makes testing much much easier. While testing, keep in mind one concentration (yellow) potion is all you will need to completely regenerate your combo. So shop a bit and stock up on yellow pots.
• For the seraphim, BFG and EB both are combat arts that should be placed last in a combo. They both have states where the next thing to do is pick targets. Anything else will halt the combo. So, if you use these combat arts, put them last in your combo.
• You should change equipment as necessary for boosting before placing individual CAs in the combo, but be sure to collect what is needed from the storage crate before you start, and be sure the appropriate weapons are ‘active’.
General
1. If you're in the middle of casting Combat Arts in a 4x or multi-CA combo, and you do a weapon attack on someone, the combo execution will be stopped but you'll still have to wait for the full regeneration time.
2. Your combo may be interrupted by stun effects. That is, if you are stunned in the middle of execution of your combo, you are halted as if the combo fizzled due to invalid states. Which, when you think about is true: you can't do anything while stunned.
3. Concentration, Meditation, etc do not affect the regeneration times of Combos, so regen times of CAs in combos will be greater than for the same CA cast normally.
4. Only yellow potions can shorten combo regen times. Their effect is instant.
5. Combos cannot be initiated on horseback. However, if the CAs in the combo are permitted on horseback, you can initiate the combo while on the ground then mount the horse and the CAs will continue to operate.
6. It is not possible to tabulate all CAs for you. But you can check for yourselves. If in doubt, test it out in SP. Before making a combo, save the game, and check the following by using the CA: a) Is it a duration C&C type or not? This should be obvious when you use it. They are in any case listed above. b) Where do you need to right-click to set it off, I.e. on the hero or another target. Many combos will not work unless you ‘fire’ them by right-clicking in the place required by the first CA in the series. (In other words, meet all the state requirements for a combo before trying to use it.)
7. Given the above simple rules, you still need to think carefully about the suitability of some CAs and whether your sequences are logical. Some CAs can be cast at a distance from the target – no good including HH here. Make sure you have the appropriate weapons ‘active’ – No good casting a Multi-shot combo with a sword in your hand. (Again invalid state=fizzle).
8. The forum is full of suggestions for combos preferred by experience players, but it is fun to put your own together and try them out – even if at the end of the day you opt for one of the tried and tested groupings.
